Manufacture of shoes



Feb. 7, 1967 'SAACSON 3,302,313

MANUFACTURE OF SHOES Filed May 19, 1964 Inventor .Flg. 4 Calvin [saacson By hisizzorney r A 74% w W 7 United States Patent 3,302,313 MANUFACTURE OF SHOES Calvin lsaacson, Wellesley, Mass., assignor to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Flemington, N.J., a corporation of New Jersey Filed May 19, 1964, Ser. No. 368,660 9 Claims. (Cl. 3643) This invention relates to the manufacture of shoes and particularly to novel and improved means for positioning insoles on, and for fastening them to, the bottoms of lasts. Thus, in various aspects, features of the invention will be found to reside in a novel insole and last as well as in a step productcomprising the insole assembled on the last.

In the manufacture of shoes, it is a very general practice to fasten insoles to lasts by means of tacks, or similar fastenings, driven through the insole and into the last after the insole has been properly positioned on the bottom of the last by the operator either by eye, or by the aid of suitable locating means. At a later stage in the manufacture of the shoe, the fastenings are withdrawn to permit the subsequent removal of the last from the finished shoe. This procedure is very well known and has been long practiced despite its many recognized disadvantages which include, among other things, the extra time and labor involved in the removal of the driven fastenings, the danger of injury to the wearer of a shoe in which one or more of the ins'ole fastening tacks may have inadvertently been left and manufacturing difficulties which may arise because of failure to position the insole properly on the bottom of the last with its peripheral edge exactly aligned with the marginal edge of the last bottom.

In view of the aforementioned and other disadvantages, numerous alternative proposals have been suggested for positioning and fastening insoles on lasts such, for example, as the provision in the bottom of a last of more or less complicated devices for impaling the insole and holding it on the last, such devices being later withdrawn to release the last from the insole, or the use of special adhesives for holding the insole on the bottom of a last which, after a predetermined period, tend to lose their adhesive qualities or are of a character that the adhesive bond may be broken by hammer blows on the insole, thus permitting removal of the last. None of these, or other approaches to this problem have, however, proved to be of practical use in the everyday manufacture of shoes for one reason or another and, so far as is known, have not been accepted by the industry.

It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide novel means for positioning an insole on, and for fastening it to the bottom of a last, which means, while quite simple and inexpensive in character, are most effective in accomplishing this result and at the same time involve a very minimum amount of modification of the insole and last and entirely avoid the need for special fastening devices, insole locating means, or special adhesives. Thus with this object in view and in accordance with features of the invention, each insole is provided with one or more tab portions formed integrally with the body of the insole and adapted to be displaced out of the plane of the insole to form projections for positioning the insole on, and for securing it to the bottom of a last, while each last is formed with one or more recesses located in predetermined relation to the marginal edge of the bottom of the last for receiving, and frictionally engaging, the mentioned projections on the insole as they are displaced out of the plane of the insole and into the recesses.

Preferably, and in the hereinafter illustrated embodiment of the invention, each insole is provided with a tab portion adjacent, to its toe end and another tab portion 3,3@Z,3i3 Patented Feb. 7, 1957 adjacent to its heel end, these tab portions being formed by passing a U-shaped cutter through the insole to provide a tab portion having two parallel sides and an arcuate end, while the last is provided with a recess adjacent to its toe end and another recess adjacent to its heel end, each recess corresponding in shape to the shape of the tab portions and having an inclined bottom surface with the deeper portion of the recess adjacent to its curved end. Moreover, the tab portions are so disposed as to extend toward each other and away from the adjacent end of the insole and the recesses of the last are correspondingly disposed so that when the tab portions are displaced out of the plane of the insole and into their corresponding recesses, the arcuate ends of the tab portion engage the correspondingly shaped ends of the recesses and thereby hold the insole securely against lengthwise movement in either direction relatively to the last movement of the insole transversely of the last, of course being prevented by the engagement of the sides of the tabs with the sides of the recesses. When desirable, for example, with lasts having steep shanks, the insole may, as herein illustrated, be provided with an additional tab portion, or tab portions, for cooperation with an additional recess formed in the shank portion of the last.

The above and other objectives and features of the invention will appear in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment shown in the accompanying drawings and will be pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective of an insole embodying a feature of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a last embodying a feature of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the novel insole and a novel last in assembled relation with the insole positioned on, and fastened to, the bottom of the last;

FIG. 4 is a view in vertical section substantially on line IV--IV in FIG. 3, and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 5 is a view in vertical section substantially on line V, FIG. 3, looking in the direction of the arrows; and

FIG. 6 is a view in vertical section substantially on the line VI-VI, FIG. 3, and looking in the direction of the arrows.

Referring to these drawings, the insole which is designated by the reference character 10 is of conventional construction and shape, being intended for use in the manufacture of a cemented or flat lasted shoe, i.e. one in which the upper is lasted with cement at the toe, in the forepart and in the shank portion and with tacks at the heel sea-t. Thus, the insole has no rib and, before assembly on a last, is flat on both of its opposite faces. It will be understood, however, that this type of insole is shown merely by Way of an example and that the features of this invention are equally adaptable for the positioning on, and fastening to, lasts of insoles having upper attaching ribs such, for example, as are used in the manufacture of Goodyear Welt shoes.

For the purposes of this invention, the insole 10 is provided with tab portions 12 and 14 each formed, preferably, by passing a U-shaped cutter all the way through the insole. Upon withdrawal of the cutter, each tab portion will, of course, remain within the plane of the insole, FIG. 1, but is capable of being displaced out of said plane, FIGS. 4 and 5, to form a projection adapted to be received in a correspondingly shaped recess formed in the bottom of a last. In FIG. 2 there is illustrated a last 20, the bottom of which is, in accordance with a feature of the invention, provided with two recesses 22 and 24, the latter recess being accessible through a suitably shaped aperture 26 in the metal heel plate 28.

With the tab portions 12 and 14 accurately located relatively to the peripheral edge of the insole and with the recesses 22 and 24 of a shape corresponding to the shape of the tab portions and accurately located relatively to the marginal edges of the bottom of the last, it will be apparent that when the insole 10 is placed on the bottom of the last 20 and the tab portions displaced out of the plane of the insole and into the recesses 22 and 24, the insole will be accurately positioned on the bottom of the last. Also, the recesses 22 and 24, while corresponding in shape to the tab portions 12 and 14, are made just slightly smaller than these tab portions so that the tab portions are frictionally engaged by the sides of the recesses, thu effectively fastening the insole to the bottom of the last, as shown in FIG. 3, see also FIGS. 4 and 5 showing the tabs 12 and 14 displaced into the recesses 22 and 24.

As herein illustrated, the tab portions 12 and 14 are arranged to head toward each other while the recesses 22 and 24 have inclined bottom surfaces 32 and 34 respectively and arcuately shaped vertically disposed end portions which face away from each other. Therefore, when the insole is assembled on the last and the tab portions 12 and 14 displaced into the recesses 22 and 24, by hand or by means of any suitable tool, the ends of the tabs will bear against the end portions of the recesses and thus securely hold the insole 10 against lengthwise movement on the last in either direction. Also, of course, inasmuch as the sides of the tabs will engage the sides of the recesses, movement of the insole in directions extending transversely of the last bottom is effectively prevented.

When desired to avoid displacement of the shank portion of the insole, for example, on lasts with steep shanks, an additional tab portion, or tab portions, may be provided on the insole together with an additional recess in the bottom of the last. Thus, as is shown in FIG. 1, two tab portions 42 and 44 may be formed in the shank portion of the insole, for example, by means of an H-shaped cutter and a rectangu-larly shaped recess 46 having an arcuate bottom surface 48 cut in the shank portion of the last, for example, by means of a rotary cutter. With these additional tab portions and recesses appropriately located, when the insole 10 is assembled on the last 20, the tab portions 42 and 44 may be displaced into recess 46, FIG. 6, in the same manner as the tab portions 12 and 14 are displaced into the recesses 22 and 44. Preferably, this recess 46 will also be formed a little undersized so as frictionally to engage the tabs 42 and 44, thus to hold the shank portion of the insole snugly against the shank portion of the last.

After the insole 10 has been positioned on, and fastened to, the bottom of the last 20, as shown in FIG. 3, see also FIGS. 4, 5 and 6, an upper will be assembled thereon, and then pulled over, following which the shoe will be completed in the usual manner. Now, the last may be readily removed simply by swinging its heel end about the hinge in a direction to lift the heel end of the last directly away from the heel end of the insole, thus withdrawing the tab 14 from the recess 24. Next, the last is pulled rearwardly toward the heel end of the shoe to cause the tab 14 to slide along the inclined bottom surface 32 of the recess 22 and tabs 42 and 44 to ride up along one side of the curved bottom 48 of the recess 46, permitting continued rearward movement and ultimate withdrawal of the last from the shoe. Because of the camming action of the inclined surface 32 and arcuate surface 48, the tab portions 12, 42 and 44 will be swung back up into, or substantially into, the plane of the insole as shown in FIG. 1. Tab 14 will similarly be pushed back into the plane of the insole by hand when the usual heel pad is inserted.

As will be apparent with the above described novel insole and last, a very accurate positioning of the insole on the bottom of the last is assured without the need for any great skill or care on the part of the operator who merely has to assemble the insole on the bottom of the last in approximately the correct position and then, with a suitable tool or by hand, force the tabs into their recesses which action, in itself, will, if necessary, shift the insole to its exact position of alignment with the marginal edge of the bottom of the last. Also, the frictional engagement of the insole tabs at the toe and heel of the insole with their corresponding recesses will hold the insole and last securely in assembled relation, at least until such relation has been ultimately established as the result of assembling, pulling over and lasting operations. When conditions make it desirable, the additional tabs and recesses in the shank portion of the insole and last may be used. Neither the formation of the tabs on the insole, which operation can be combined with the dieing out of the insole, or the provision of the recesses of the bottom of the last should involve any considerable labor or expense and no complicated mechanism or other devices on the insole or last, which might easily become damaged during handling, are required.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. An insole provided with a plurality of locating and fastening tab portions, U-shaped slits defining each of said tab portions so that each tab portion is within the body of the insole, integral with, and hinged to, the insole for movement out of the plane of the insole, one of said tab portions being located adjacent to the toe end of the insole and another of said tab portions being located adjacent to the heel end Of the insole.

2. An insole as set forth in claim 1 wherein the tab portion located adjacent the toe end of the insole is headed toward the heel end of the insole and the tab portion locate dadjacent the heel end of the insole is headed toward the toe end thereof.

3. An insole provided with a plurality of locating and fastening tab portions, U-sha-ped Slits defining each of said tab portions so that each tab portion is within the body of the insole, integral with, and hinged to, the insole for movement out of the plane of the insole, one of said tab portions being located adjacent to the toe end of the insole, another adjacent to the heel end and a third tab portion located in the shank portion of the insole.

4. A last provided on its bottom surface with a plurality of recesses located in predetermined relation to the marginal edge of the bottom of the last, one of said recesses being located adjacent the toe end of the last and another of the recesses being located adjacent to the heel end of the last, each of said recesses having a downwardly sloping bottom wall to provide a shoulder at one end of the recess, the shoulder of the first mentioned recess facing toward the toe end of the last and the shoulder of the second mentioned recess facing toward the heel end of the last.

5. A last provided on its bottom surface with a plurality of recesses located in predetermined relation to the marginal edge of the bottom of the last, one of said recesses being located adjacent to the toe end of the last, another adjacent to the heel end of the last and a third in the shank portion of the last, the recess located adjacent to the toe end of the last having a downwardly sloping bottom wall to provide a shoulder facing toward the toe end of the last and the recess located adjacent to the heel end of the last having a downwardly sloping bottom wall to provide a shoulder facing toward the heel end of the last.

6. A step product comprising a last and an insole assembled in registered relation, said insole being provided with a plurality of locating and fastening tab portions, U-shaped slits defining each of said tab portions so that each tab portion is within the body of the insole, integral with, and hinged to, the insole for movement out of the plane of the insole, said last being provided with a plurality of recesses located in predetermined relation to the marginal edge of the bottom of the last and of a shape and size to receive and frictionally engage the locating and fastening tab portions of the insole, and with said tab portions of the insole displaced out of the plane of the insole and forced into said recesses thus to locate the insole on, and to fasten it to the last.

7. A step product as set forth in claim 6 wherein certain of said integrally formed tab portions and certain of the cooperating recesses on the last are located adjacent the toe and heel ends, respectively, of the insole and the last.

8. A step product as set forth in claim '6 wherein two of said integrally formed tab portions on the insole and two cooperating recesses on the last are located adjacent to the toe and heel ends, respectively, of the insole and last, and a third integrally formed tab portion on the insole and a cooperating recess are located, respectively, on the shank portions of the insole and the last.

9. A step product as set forth in claim 6 wherein one of the tab portions is located adjacent to the toe end of the 20 insole and is headed toward the heel end of the insole and another tab portion is located adjacent the heel end of the insole and is headed toward the toe end thereof and wherein one of said recesses is located adjacent the toe end of the last and another of the recesses is located adjacent to the heel end of the last, each of said recesses having a downwardly sloping Wall to provide a shoulder at one end of the recess, the shoulder of the first-mentioned recess facing toward the toe end of the last and the shoulder of the second mentioned recess facing toward the heel end of the last.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 645,038 3/1900 Lyons 12129.6 1,736,276 11/1929 Pym 12 129.6 1,884,882 10/1932 Schoenky 12129.6 1,975,763 10/1934 Binderet a1 12 129.8 2,064,629 12/1936 Reggie 36-43 JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner.

A. R. GUEST, Assistant Examiner. 

1. AN INSOLE PROVIDED WITH A PLURALITY OF LOCATING AND FASTENING TAB PORTIONS, U-SHAPED SLITS DEFINING EACH OF SAID TAB PORTIONS SO THAT EACH TAB PORTION IS WITHIN THE BODY OF THE INSOLE, INTEGRAL WITH, AND HINGED TO, THE INSOLE FOR MOVEMENT OUT OF THE PLANE OF THE INSOLE, ONE OF SAID 